Soft Onion Burger Buns
These buns are slowly fermented with sweet, tender Peri and Sons boiled onions folded right into the dough — soft, pillowy, and deeply savory. A perfect way to impress BBQ guests! The recipe makes 6 buns.
prep time
1 hour / 0 mins
cook time
25 minutes
Ingredients
For the sweet stiff starter:
10 grams starter
30 grams water
60 grams bread flour
20 grams granulated sugar
For the onion preparation:
1 small yellow onion
1/4 cup water
Pinch of salt
For the final dough:
All of the sweet stiff starter
300 grams bread flour
100 grams milk
110 grams boiled onions, well chopped
1 egg
25 grams granulated sugar
5 grams salt
45 grams softened butter
Optional ingredients:
Sesame seeds for topping and 1 egg for egg wash
10 grams starter
30 grams water
60 grams bread flour
20 grams granulated sugar
For the onion preparation:
1 small yellow onion
1/4 cup water
Pinch of salt
For the final dough:
All of the sweet stiff starter
300 grams bread flour
100 grams milk
110 grams boiled onions, well chopped
1 egg
25 grams granulated sugar
5 grams salt
45 grams softened butter
Optional ingredients:
Sesame seeds for topping and 1 egg for egg wash
Directions
1. Make the Sweet Stiff Starter:
Mix starter, water, bread flour, and sugar together well. Knead for 5 minutes until it starts to smooth out. Ferment at 78–80°F minimum — ideally overnight. A proofer works great here. If using sooner, 80-83°F will speed things up, but do not use the starter before it has truly doubled in size. * If you do not have a proofer, adjust the starter amount to 20-30g so you’re not waiting for 12+ hours for your sweet stiff starter to be ready.
2. Prepare the Onions:
Chop the onion. Place in a small pot with ¼ cup water and a tiny pinch of salt. Cover with a lid and gently boil over low heat until the onions are very soft. Let them cool completely, strain off any excess liquid, then weigh out 110g for the dough. Chop them as fine as you can.
3. Mix the Final Dough:
Combine the sweet stiff starter, bread flour, milk, chopped boiled onions, egg, sugar, and salt. Mix by hand for 5–8 minutes until no lumps remain, or use a stand mixer on the lowest setting. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then slowly incorporate the soft butter. Continue mixing at the lowest speed. With a stand mixer, this takes about 25–30 minutes. The dough should start pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Do not overmix or turn up the speed, and don’t mix until windowpane, just until the dough comes together. If your onion mixture was wetter than mine, you may need to add 20-30 grams more flour, but don’t over do it.
4. First Fermentation:
Transfer the dough to a lightly greased container and cover. Proof at a nice warm temp (if you can) for 3-5 hours. You are not necessarily looking for the dough to double. I have found that if you shape this type of dough before it’s really puffy you’re less likely to get large air bubbles under the surface of the crust when you bake it.
5. Shape and Final Proof:
Once the dough has fermented for a few hours, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 6 pieces (roughly 110g each). Shape each into a tight ball by folding the sides to the middle, flipping seam-side down, and rotating against the counter while pulling toward yourself. Flatten the balls out so your buns are wide and flat vs a round ball. Place in a lightly greased 9”×13” pan, cover loosely, and proof until puffy — about 9–10 hours at 70°F. If your kitchen is warmer (75°F+), refrigerate the shaped buns before the final proof to avoid overproofing. *Also, if you do all of these steps and it's too early to let them final proof, put them in the fridge until before bed and bake them the next morning. You can even leave them in the fridge until the next morning and then let them final proof all day and bake them right before dinner, just make sure they have enough time. If you cut the final proof too short, the buns will be tough and dry.
6. Bake:
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Beat one egg and lightly brush over each bun, then sprinkle with sesame seeds if using. Bake for 20–25 minutes until deep golden brown. Let cool slightly before slicing.
Baker’s Notes:
Make sure the boiled onions are well-drained and fully cooled before adding to the dough so they don’t interfere with fermentation.
Chop the onions as finely as possible for the best texture in the finished bun.
The onion step can be done ahead of time and refrigerated until you’re ready to mix.
Do not turn the mixer speed up at any point — higher speed heats the dough and weakens the gluten, which can cause the buns to collapse after baking. This is most common with a mixer.
Mix starter, water, bread flour, and sugar together well. Knead for 5 minutes until it starts to smooth out. Ferment at 78–80°F minimum — ideally overnight. A proofer works great here. If using sooner, 80-83°F will speed things up, but do not use the starter before it has truly doubled in size. * If you do not have a proofer, adjust the starter amount to 20-30g so you’re not waiting for 12+ hours for your sweet stiff starter to be ready.
2. Prepare the Onions:
Chop the onion. Place in a small pot with ¼ cup water and a tiny pinch of salt. Cover with a lid and gently boil over low heat until the onions are very soft. Let them cool completely, strain off any excess liquid, then weigh out 110g for the dough. Chop them as fine as you can.
3. Mix the Final Dough:
Combine the sweet stiff starter, bread flour, milk, chopped boiled onions, egg, sugar, and salt. Mix by hand for 5–8 minutes until no lumps remain, or use a stand mixer on the lowest setting. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then slowly incorporate the soft butter. Continue mixing at the lowest speed. With a stand mixer, this takes about 25–30 minutes. The dough should start pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Do not overmix or turn up the speed, and don’t mix until windowpane, just until the dough comes together. If your onion mixture was wetter than mine, you may need to add 20-30 grams more flour, but don’t over do it.
4. First Fermentation:
Transfer the dough to a lightly greased container and cover. Proof at a nice warm temp (if you can) for 3-5 hours. You are not necessarily looking for the dough to double. I have found that if you shape this type of dough before it’s really puffy you’re less likely to get large air bubbles under the surface of the crust when you bake it.
5. Shape and Final Proof:
Once the dough has fermented for a few hours, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 6 pieces (roughly 110g each). Shape each into a tight ball by folding the sides to the middle, flipping seam-side down, and rotating against the counter while pulling toward yourself. Flatten the balls out so your buns are wide and flat vs a round ball. Place in a lightly greased 9”×13” pan, cover loosely, and proof until puffy — about 9–10 hours at 70°F. If your kitchen is warmer (75°F+), refrigerate the shaped buns before the final proof to avoid overproofing. *Also, if you do all of these steps and it's too early to let them final proof, put them in the fridge until before bed and bake them the next morning. You can even leave them in the fridge until the next morning and then let them final proof all day and bake them right before dinner, just make sure they have enough time. If you cut the final proof too short, the buns will be tough and dry.
6. Bake:
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Beat one egg and lightly brush over each bun, then sprinkle with sesame seeds if using. Bake for 20–25 minutes until deep golden brown. Let cool slightly before slicing.
Baker’s Notes:
Make sure the boiled onions are well-drained and fully cooled before adding to the dough so they don’t interfere with fermentation.
Chop the onions as finely as possible for the best texture in the finished bun.
The onion step can be done ahead of time and refrigerated until you’re ready to mix.
Do not turn the mixer speed up at any point — higher speed heats the dough and weakens the gluten, which can cause the buns to collapse after baking. This is most common with a mixer.
